Suicide cases on the rise

AS CASES of suicide seem to be escalating in Bulawayo, an elderly man identified as John Phiri from Sizinda, hung himself in a bush close to Nketa Drive and Godrich Road intersection next to Nyaradzo Funeral complex.

“I can confirm that we received a report of a case of the sudden death of a man, aged 61, who was found hanging at Sizinda bush. Investigations are ongoing,’’he said.

He said, as police in Bulawayo, they are concerned about the rise in suicides and they encourage people to share their problems, so as to find better solutions in life.

One of Phiri’s close friends who refused to be identified said: “His death is a severe blow. He was a man of people. We were always together. He never showed any signs of desperation. When neighbours discovered him in the bush around 6am, I was one of the first people who were called to the scene.”

He said Phiri got his pension last year and had bought a flat in the suburb as investment and was installing a perimeter wall to his other house.

Another resident said the deceased had recently converted to Christianity and used to attend prayer sessions on the mountain close by.

In December last year a commuter omnibus driver from Pumula South killed his wife who was a nurse and hung himself in the same room after they clashed over infidelity.

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